Joseph Bloom

Dr. Joe Bloom was interviewed by Bill Schneider and Karen Brewster on April 20, 2010 at his home in Portland, Oregon about his career as a provider of mental health services in Alaska. As a psychiatrist, he helped establish mental health programs for the Indian Health Service in Alaska in the late 1960s, and worked to provide coordinated services for rural Alaska. He also worked as a private psychiatrist in Anchorage, and later went on to teach psychiatry and be the dean of the Oregon Health and Science University Medical School in Portland, Oregon. He retired in 2001, but has remained active with psychiatry and health board issues in Oregon. In this interview, Joe talks about becoming a psychiatrist, working for the Indian Health Service in Alaska, working in rural Alaska, coordination between different agencies and hospitals, and changes in Alaskan mental health services.